trend is for increased activities in these areas,
it is hard for me to believe that the electronic
cash market alternatives may not hold some
promise for the remaining 70 percent of prod-
uct sold.
The paper which Dr. Sporleder has presented
gives the profession an opportunity to begin to
identify and prioritize the issues surrounding the
development and utilization of information tech-
nologies in the agricultural sector. There may
be considerable disagreement concerning the is-
sues which need to be addressed but this rep-
resents a first step in an open discussion of the
issues and the possible policy implication sur-
rounding this new technology and its use. Our
profession must take the leadership in this area
and analyze the problems associated with these
issues. Decisionmakers at the state and national
levels will have to address these issues and de-
velop policies which are consistent with the goals
and objectives of the land-grant system.
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